We made a pilgrimage to Bordeaux to learn as much as possible from vine to wine. We sought to learn about viticulture in the Médoc: the appellations, the peninsula's geography, geology, climate/microclimate, soil, and as much as we could absorb about terroir. We also sought to learn about the local history, the Conseil des Crus Classés and, of course, traditional French vinification. For example, one aspect of traditional French vinification is that in French, there is no translation for the term "winemaker". The French use the term "cellarmaster" or "vineyard keeper", but never use the term "maker" in line with a philosophy of working with nature, as opposed to a scientific approach to "making" wine.

The term "Médoc" derives from the Latin pagus medulorum meaning "middle territory". The Médoc is a peninsula located in the southwest of France, bordered on the west by the Atlantic Ocean and on the east by the Gironde estuary. The region is north of the city of Bordeaux. The natural humidity lends to a temperate climate and the estuary results in water that stays cooler than the air during summers and warmer than the air during winters. The soil is porous and gravelly and the water table ranges between 2-8 meters. There are eight precisely defined appellations in the whole of the Médoc, from north to south: Médoc, Haut-Médoc, Saint-Estephe, Pauillac, Saint-Julien, Listrac-Médoc, Moulis-En-Médoc and Margaux.

The Romans first introduced the cultivation of grapes to Bordelais when it was a province of the Roman Empire. The wine was rough, however, and refinement did not begin until the 17th century. The first classification of Bordelais wines occurred in 1725 with official text recognitions of Ch.Margaux, Ch.Lafite, Ch.Latour and Ch.Haut-Brion. In 1855, at the request of Napoleon III, the négociants (wine traders) classified the renowned Bordeaux wines in order of importance from first (Premier) to fifth (Cinquième) growths. Only twice since the 1855 classification has there been a change to the original list, most significantly, in 1973, when Ch.Mouton Rothschild was elevated from a second growth to a first growth vineyard. Today, only five Châteaux are classified as first growth wines (1er Crus): Ch.Lafite Rothschild (Pauillac), Ch.Latour (Pauillac), Ch.Margaux (Margaux), Ch.Haut-Brion (Graves) and Ch.Mouton Rothschild (Pauillac). All but one, Ch.Haut-Brion, represent appellations within the Médoc.

It is also noteworthy that four of the five top growth estates are owned/headed by women: Florence Rogers-Pinault is the Director of Ch.Latour, Corinne Mentzelopoulos owns Ch.Margaux, Joan Dillon, Duchesse de Mouchy is President of Ch.Haut-Brion and Baroness Philippine de Rothschild owns Ch.Mouton.

There is so much one can learn from studied resource materials that it would be unfair and incomplete to summarize anything about the Médoc or any specific château in this post. Therefore, I leave it to those with a genuine interest to seek out those resource materials or to email me privately.

As further background, we arranged our châteaux appointments months in advance and only after exchanging numerous correspondence with each château, with Ch.Lafite confirming our appointment the same week we departed. By the time we departed from home, we fully appreciated that as serious as the French are about cuisine (indeed, they confer the Legion d'Honneur upon the great Chefs for their outstanding contribution to French culture), the French are as serious about wine. Generally, the grands crus are not open to the public and none are open without an appointment. The chais, cellars and vinotèques (a château's private wine library) are also only shown by invitation only.

Upon first impression, this degree of pre-arrangement may seem to reflect a striking difference between most California wineries and French châteaux. However, it really is not. In California, wineries (production rooms) are different from vineyards (farms). Meaning, not all California wineries are located at vineyards. The type of California tasting rooms with an "open door" to the general public are the type that generally maintain a separate winery from vineyard, may only be a winery, or may only be a tasting room. Also, the less of a tourist/marketing destination and more careful a California winery/vineyard, the more likely an appointment is required since unfettered tourist traffic can seriously impact production, farming and/or both. Further, some smaller production California wineries are not open to the public.

In France, a grand cru must not only grow and harvest crops from its own estate, but it must also vinify and bottle within the confines of the estate to maintain its respective classé. There are many precise standards to maintaining classé status that apply not only to an estate's vineyards (soil qualities, base yields, etc.), but also extend to an estate's production (sugar levels, temperature levels, etc.). A breach of any of these standards results in dire consequences. For example, in St. Emilion, at least two châteaux were recently declassified and the punishment lasts for 10 years before a château may re-apply for grand cru classification. Therefore, the foremost importance of a grand cru is wine and visitors are almost a collateral thought. Nevertheless, visitors are greeted with the hospitality of guests and, as guests, it is a privilege to visit a château. Indeed, it was our immense privilege and pleasure to be guests at the following:

Premiers Grands Crus Classés

Our first châteaux visits were to three of the Médoc's four Premiers Crus: Ch.Margaux, Ch. Lafite Rothschild and Ch.Mouton Rothschild. Unfortunately, Ch.Latour was closed several weeks for renovations.

Château Margaux
Mme. Gunvor Bizard greeted us in the reception room and guided our tour of the impeccable estate. For over four centuries, Ch.Margaux has been considered a wine of excellence. Today, Corinne Mentzelopoulos is the château's proprietor and, together with her team, she continues to produce outstanding Margaux wines on the estate's 262 hectares (650 acres). The estate's Premier Grand Cru is Château Margaux. The second bottling is Pavillon (Rouge/Blanc) du Château Margaux.

The estate's current reception room is the estate's historical cooperage. The large fireplace is where coopers dried the barrels.

Currently, the estate dedicates 82 hectares (203 acres) to grow Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc. The average age of the vines in the red vineyard is 35 years. Harvesting is done by hand from September through October by a seasonal team of harvesters. Ch.Margaux employs traditional French vinification techniques: fermentation is 3 weeks in oak vats, aging is 18 to 24 months in new French oak barrels and fining is with egg whites. The use of oak vats means that there is no punching down or pumping over during the maceration process.

The estate's traditional philosophy is that oak vats lend to more finesse and elegant wines.

Since the château is designated as a French historical landmark, any efforts to modernise or annex the exterior buildings are restricted, e.g., even the addition of windows is restricted. As a result of the historical landmark designation, when the time came for expansion in 1982, the estate built a subterranean cellar with a 1,200 barrel capacity adjacent to the chai (above-ground cellar). As a result of the region's high water table, the cellar is made of concrete with two walls that are each several meters thick. The open space between the concrete walls allows for water overflow and this space is drained regularly.

Today, the estate continues its cooperage tradition with Alain Nunes, the in-house cooper who produces three new French oak barrels per day (approximately 30% of the château's needs). Messr. Nunes continues the same trade as his father and, prior to his father, the château employed two coopers.

Estate cooperage is rare and only three estates continue the tradition: Ch.Margaux, Ch.Lafite Rothschild and Ch.Haut-Brion.

Annual production is ~150,000 bottles of Château Margaux, ~200,000 bottles of Pavillon Rouge and ~33,000 bottles of Pavillon Blanc. At the end of our visit, we tasted the 2004 Château Margaux.

By all accounts, the 2004 is a classic Margaux vintage

Château Lafite Rothschild

Aurore confirmed our appointment only days before we departed. As one of the largest in the Médoc, the vineyard is 110 hectares (260 acres) and spread across a very good slope. The name "Lafite" derives from the meaning "small hill" and the small hill is located in the rear of the beautiful château.

The different grape varietals are planted according to the condition of the soil: estates with heavy soils plant more Merlot and estates with gravelly, porous soils plant more Cabernet Sauvignon. The Ch.Lafite vineyard is cultivated with old vines of 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot and 5% is Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc. In Pauillac, Cabernet Sauvignon is king and the varietal gives the specificity and character to Pauillac wines.

Francois next to a soil extraction that reflects a top layer of pebbles, followed by porous, gravelly soil.

Ch.Lafite utilises 29 wooden vats, 20 stainless steel vats and 18 little vats. Typically, pumping over is twice per day for ~17 days and there are 20 days of maceration. Wines are matured 18 months in new French oak barrels: 7 months in a natural cellar and 11 months in the second-year chai (barrel room), built under the supervision of architect Ricardo Bofill. The circular vault holds 2,200 barrels and is supported by 16 columns. The round design is functional since racking, bottling and cleaning can be done with greater efficiency than a traditional, linear designed chai.

Ch.Lafite cellar workers in the second-year chai

As has been the tradition at Ch.Lafite, 100% of the Domaine's cooperage is done in-house in Pauillac. Ch.Lafite employs 6 full-time coopers to produce 2,000 barrels per year. This is adequate to supply Ch.Lafite and all the other estate-owned properties with new French oak barrels each year. The French oak is selected from the Allier and Nivernais forests, then left to dry in the open air for two years at Ch.Lafite before being crafted.

Traditional racking is 5-6 weeks. 8,000 organic egg whites are used for fining. When asked why organic eggs were used, our host explained that it was for stability reasons in the fining process as opposed to any environmental concerns. Annual production is between 15,000 and 25,000 cases (or 180,000 and 300,000 bottles).

1995 was an exceptional vintage and our host gave us the bottle's cork as a keepsake of our special visit.

Château Mouton Rothschild

Marie-Françoise confirmed our appointment and it was a delight to finally meet her. Ch.Mouton Rothschild is one of the few grand cru estates with a specially designated visitor's center and the appointment begins with a video narrated by Baroness Philippine. The video details the chateau's heritage. Around 1850, Baron Nathaniel de Rothschild settled in Paris and in 1853, he purchased Ch.Brane Mouton in order to serve his friends his own wine. The estate was renamed "Château Mouton Rothschild". In 1922, the Baron's grandson, Philippe de Rothschild took control of the estate and it was his lifelong passion to elevate Ch.Mouton Rothschild from a second growth to a first growth vineyard. In 1973, his passions were realised and Ch.Mouton Rothschild joined the Premier Grand Cru rank. Baron Philippe died in 1988 at the age of 86 to be succeeded by his daughter Baroness Philippine. Since then, Baroness Philippine works closely with the executive directors to maintain, modernise and develop the family business.

Ch.Mouton employs traditional French vinification techniques: fermentation is 3 weeks in oak vats, ageing is 18 to 24 months in new French oak barrels and fining is with egg whites.

An unexpected surprise of our visit included a viewing of the Rothschild family's private museum (no photos allowed). The Rothschilds have a passion for art and their private collection includes Greco-Roman artifacts, as well as a concentration of 17th and 18th century fine art and antiquities. Notably, there is a golden ram that served as the model for the Ch.Mouton 2000 bottle engraving, as well as the figural statues that served as the models for the Ch.Clerc Milon and Ch.d'Armailhac labels.

This was another unexpected surprise as the first bottles of 2006 Ch.Mouton had just been allocated to a négociant at the astronomical price of €800 per bottle. All the wines are exceptional and especially the Ch.Mouton which was so robust, so refined and so intensely flavourful.

Poetry in a glass

I love to talk about nothing. It's the only thing I know anything about. Wilde